1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for detecting oil and other lighter-than-water contaminants in an effluent stream, and in one of its aspects, this invention relates to an apparatus for continuously detecting the presence of oil and other lighter-than-water contaminants and the acidity or pH of an effluent stream.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Environmental regulations have been promulgated which require that the effluent stream of commercial establishments be monitored to determine if any oil is being discharged and to measure the pH of the waste water.
Consequently, there is a need for an inexpensive and disposable detector which can be inserted into the sewage system of a commercial or other establishment using the conventional access line. While there are apparatus for detecting the presence of oil in a body of water (for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,131,773 and 4,223,552) and for extracting a sample from a stream at a specified time (for example U.S. Pat. No. 3,400,575), there is a need for a device which can be installed directly into a sewage system to continuously sample the effluent stream.